My 21st Century Classroom

                                                                Belief Statement

In Sedu 183, we were asked to come up with our belief statement. To go along with this belief statement, we had to write a personal story as to why we feel this way. Once the essay was done, we had to make it visual as seen in the above video. The last part of the assignment was to reflect on the project as a whole.









My Classroom
When I think about my 21st Century Classroom, one of the first things to come to mind is the classroom setup. When I come a 1st grade teacher, this is what I want my classroom to look like. I'd never really thought about this part of teaching but, once I got going it was really easy to design. One of the main themes in classroom will be collaboration. As you can see, I have five round tables for students to work at rather than individual desks. I will teach in a way that makes each group work together to complete tasks and assignments. I feel as if this collaboration will get not only learn from me but through each other. When taking tests, I play to either try to move students to different places around the room or use tests that let them work together. Of course I don't want just one person in the group doing all the work, so through out the year I will assign different students different jobs for each assignment or project. My classroom will also be learning centered. Since the groups will always be working together on projects, they will learn from each experience. They are learning to learn on their own and use each project to succeed on another. I have a circle rug and bean bag chairs so the students can all connect in a more comfortable environment than just their tables. They will have story time and after each project we will meet there as a class to talk about their favorite and least favorite parts of projects or assignments. I also have three computers in my classroom. With these, I will promote transparency. One main thing I want to do is connect with classrooms across the country or even world. As a class, we will Skype other classrooms. We can collaborate on group projects and compare other classes or even just make talk to them and to become aware of the different cultures.

Rituals and Routines

 One ritual I want to incorporate in my classroom is Collaboration. Each day I will explain an assignment I want them to complete and they will work as a group to get it done. If an assignment requires a little more work, I might combine tables. I want the students to get use to working together and start to use each other to answer questions before they ask me. I will be working with each table to help them figure out what they might not be able to figure out.

Another routine I will use is transparency. With the computers in our room, we will be connecting with other classrooms. We will try to connect with classrooms with the same set up as us so each table has a group they can talk to over Skype. The students can use what they learn from the other classrooms and use it in ours. I will use what the other classrooms are telling us and create projects for my own students to do.

The last ritual I want my students to learn is authentic assessment. After each assignment or project we will meet on the carpet and bean bag chairs. Here I will ask the students what they learned from each assignment and what they liked or didn't like. I will make the atmosphere comfortable so I can hear from every student and that they also feel comfortable asking questions.


Instructional Glimpse
A typical lesson plan in my classroom would include, me teaching a new concept so they get the basic ideas and then giving them something to work on in their different groups. I will use as many visuals as possible by incorporating power points that they can interact with. I created a basic PowerPoint about synonyms for first graders that I feel they could really learn from. To test their knowledge of concepts, I will watch how they work together on assignments and assess the outcomes.

My Technology Integration
One tool I will use in my classroom is Skype. With this site, we can connect with anyone across the country and even world. Once you get an account, all you have to do is call another person and either just use voice or voice and video. It's very easy to set up and free. As a class we will be collaborated with other classrooms from all over.

Another tool I look forward to using in my classroom is Edmodo. Using this site students and teachers can connect using appropriate social media for the classroom. Teachers can post things like homework, assignments, updates or polls. As a students you can view their updates and reminders, check test dates, see what you missed in class, and even work together on homework. This tool is super modern and up to date. It's also free and easy to understand. However, since I will be teaching really young kids, their parents will have to help them access their classes and also use it to keep up with what's going on in their child's class. 

PLN

After taking SEDU 183, I have a whole new perspective of my personal learning network. I've been using the internet and social networking sites since I was in grade school pretty much, so I can find whatever I'm looking for very quickly. However, now I'm aware of how I can use these sites in the classroom. The first thing I'm really excited about using is blogs. I've found blogs that teachers post giving advise, project ideas, and just general tips. Having access to these blogs makes me feel more comfortable about becoming a teacher. I also want to use Twitter to try and find other teachers to follow for advise and ideas. I will also have my own blog where I post updates about my own classroom. I also want my classroom to be connected to other classrooms via Skype. As a future educator, I feel that having these connections with other teachers will help improve my classroom environment. I also plan to have up to date computers and projectors in my classroom.

Annotated Bibliography


"Classroom Architect." Classroom Architect. ALTEC at the University of Kansas. Web. 09 May 2012.
I used this site to design my classroom. It was really easy and fun to use. It was also very helpful.
""Create Free Blogs"" Blogger. Web. 09 May 2012.

This free set lets anyone create their own blog. I will continue to use this blog and follow other teachers. I will use their advise and classroom ideas.

"Edmodo | Secure Social Learning Network for Teachers and Students." Edmodo | Secure Social Learning Network for Teachers and Students. Web. 09 May 2012. 

This is a free social networking site appropriate for the classroom. As a teacher, I can post homework updates and assignments and my students will have access to my updates at home or whenever.

"Free Skype Internet Calls and Cheap Calls to Phones Online - Skype." Skype. Web. 09 May 2012. 

This site provides free face to face video connects. I will use this on the computers in my classroom.

"Welcome to Twitter." Twitter. Web. 09 May 2012. 

This is a free social networking site where users send "tweets". You can follow people and people can follow you. I will use this site to follow other teachers for advise and project ideas.